The Galaxy Bleeds
by Gohan Roxas
Summary: Commander Talia Shepard is humanity's best soldier, and the best chance for a human Spectre. But the Geth have returned from the dark space, seemingly led by the Council's best Spectre. How can she deal with this? OC alert. Fem!Shep/OC. Rated for violence, language and a possible sex scene.
1. Change of Plans

The three black-armoured figures fell from a high height, seemingly to their deaths. Far from it, in fact. At the last moment, all three shifted to land on their feet with a dull thud.

Each person was different in their own way. One was of medium height and build, his armour plain and unadorned apart from a few circular orange lights on the softer parts of the suit. He held himself like a soldier should, straight and strong, though there was a wariness and nervousness about him.

The second man was taller than the first, his armour even plainer than the first man's. He was grinning inside the helmet he wore, and low chuckles escaped him every now and again.

The third figure, the leader, was smaller than all three, standing at maybe 5'8" if not less. The contours of the chest-plate made it obvious that the person was a woman, but she too held herself like a soldier. Her armour was a dull grey-black, but it had a large red stripe on the arms. The stripe was repeated on her helmet.

"Weapons ready," the woman told the other two, reaching to her left side and grabbing her sidearm.

Wordlessly, the two men copied the gesture, though the taller of the two reached behind him for a shotgun rather than for his sidearm.

"Smells like smoke and death," the shorter man commented, grimacing.

"I'm just glad this isn't a basic shakedown run," the other soldier smiled. "Finally, some action!"

"Calm down, Jenkins," the leader remarked, her voice all business. "This isn't just any job."

Jenkins' face fell. "Sorry, ma'am."

The trio walked on until they reached a small plain adorned with large stones. The leader and the shorter man stayed behind the stones, their faces set. Jenkins, meanwhile, stood out in plain sight, looking around.

There was a slight buzzing sound.

Jenkins blinked and spun on his heels, the shotgun held lazily in his hands. He heard the buzzing again, coming from the forest nearby. To his horror, he saw three purple drones with blue eyes zooming in. They had small guns trained on him. "Contact!" he shouted to the leader and his ally.

It was the last thing he ever said.

The drones fired on him, riddling him with bullets. Acting on reflex, the other two opened fire on them, taking down two of them. The man lowered his pistol and held out a hand. The hand became enveloped in a blue light, and he launched his hand forward, sending a bolt of the light at the third drone. It sputtered and squeaked before joining the other two machines on the ground, dead.

Holstering her pistol, the leader walked sadly over to Jenkins. Blood surrounded his still form, and his hard-suit was littered with bullet holes. She knelt beside him and pulled his helmet off, revealing his shocked face and short-cut brown hair. She ran her hand over his face, closing his eyes in the old gesture to put the departed at rest.

The man knelt beside her, his face sad but flat, a soldier's trained response to a comrade's death. "He was a good man."

"We can give him proper burial later, Kaidan," the leader muttered quietly, also saddened by Jenkins' demise. "For now, we need to move."

Kaidan nodded silently. "Aye, Commander."

The two soldiers walked on, into the forest the drones had come from. The Commander turned once to look back at the still form of Jenkins. Steeling her resolve, she turned back and followed Kaidan onwards.

* * *

After reaching another clearing beyond the forest, they found a somewhat familiar sight. A woman in white and pink armour was using a heavy pistol – a Carnifex hand-cannon, seemingly – fighting off what could only be called a monstrosity.

It was tall, taller than any human could ever be. It had cables and wires that looked like muscle and sinew all along its legs and arms. It had a white exoskeleton, and one optic that glowed a light blue, the same light that emanated from the drones that had killed Jenkins moments before.

The Commander couldn't believe her eyes. It was a Geth.

"Kaidan, Overload!" she shouted.

"On it!" the man responded, bringing up his left arm. A contraption made entirely of a dull orange light appeared on it. Kaidan typed in a code on the device before thrusting it at the Geth. The synthetic shuddered and growled angrily, marching towards Kaidan.

A massive hole appeared in its head.

Smirking, the Commander vented her sniper rifle and replaced it on her back as the gun condensed into a small package.

The white-armoured woman stood up and pulled off her helmet. She had tan skin, and her dark hair was tied into a ponytail to keep it out of her face.

"Are you alright?" the Commander asked.

"I'm fine, thanks to you," the soldier replied. "I'm Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams. "And you are…?"

"My name's…" the other woman started.

"Contact right!" Kaidan interrupted, grabbing his pistol.

The two women instantly pulled out their own sidearms, following the gaze of the man.

Four Geth were marching into the area, wielding shotguns and assault rifles. Quick shots from Ashley and Kaidan took one of the synthetics down, while the Commander fired multiple times on a second. The gun clicked empty and she growled. "Dammit! I've overheated!"

Kaidan and Ashley grimaced and shared a look, indicating that they had too. The Commander pulled out her assault rifle, knowing that her other two weapons – her sniper rifle and shotgun – would do nothing right now. Her shots seemed to bounce off the Geth, as a dull blue field came into view.

A small spherical device rolled from a nearby spot and stopped at the feet of one of the Geth. Almost curious, the synthetic bent down to look at the thing.

There was a rapid beeping.

"Grenade!" Ashley shouted, running behind a rock formation.

The Commander and Kaidan dived toward a similar set of stones.

The grenade exploded, sending the top half of one of the Geth flying, leaving the legs nearby. The second synthetic growled and looked around, searching for what had left the explosive device there.

A figure ran behind the thing and fired a single pistol shot into the back of its head. The explosion had clearly shattered the Geth's shields, as the shot went through the plating, white fluid – the Geth equivalent of blood – spraying everywhere. The synthetic fell with a thud.

Ashley looked beyond her cover and gasped as she looked behind the figure. "Look out!"

The person clearly didn't need the warning, as he shot the threat – the now-legless Geth – through the blue optic.

Kaidan whistled. "Impressive."

Silently, the Commander agreed.

The trio stood up and walked over to the figure to see more.

It was a man in his late twenties or early thirties, though he looked a little older. He carried himself like a soldier, and he wore grey clothes that had a slightly militaristic look about them. His face was vaguely handsome, though the effect was soured by prominent scars on his brow and chin. His brown hair was short-cut and dishevelled, and his eyes were a light brown.

"Who the hell are you?" Ashley demanded of him. "And how did you learn to do that? More importantly, how the hell did you get grenades?"

The man looked at her; his gaze wasn't hostile, but it was a little unsettling. "That's a nice way to say 'thanks' to the man who saved your arses," he replied sarcastically. He spoke with an Australian accent.

Kaidan recognised the accent and his eyebrows furrowed. "You're from the Oceania Coalition, aren't you?"

The man grinned. "I was, a long time ago." He looked at the Commander. "Gotta say, though, you did well against those synthetic pieces of shit. Who are you?"

The woman pulled off her helmet to look at him. She had red hair that stopped at her shoulders, and her green eyes burned with compassion and determination at the same time. She had a small scar on her brow. She was definitely pretty, but she definitely carried herself like any other warrior would. "I'm Commander Talia Shepard of the _SSV Normandy_. Alliance military." She looked at Kaidan behind her. "This is Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, a friend from the _Normandy_." Now she indicated Ashley. "And this is…"

"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of Eden Prime, I know," the man interrupted. "I do live here, you know. Besides, not many people in the entire galaxy have white and pink armour, let alone here."

Ashley's eyebrow shot up. "Is that a shot or something?"

He laughed. "I'm just pointing out a fact." He looked at Shepard. "So, Commander Shepard, eh? Aren't you the one who earned the Star of Terra for what you did on Elysium?"

Shepard nodded. "I was just doing my job, though."

"That's what they all say, at first," he replied cynically. "Well, I should make introductions of my own." He holstered his pistol. "My names Damian Proctor, though they used to call me 'Huntsman'."

Kaidan's eyes widened as he pulled off his helmet. "_You're _Huntsman?"

"You don't have to sound so shocked," Damian smirked, before walking over to a nearby spire. It was massive, a silvery-white, and was surmounted by – gruesomely – an impaled human colonist. "Dragon's Teeth," he growled. "The Geth use these things for something, it changes the victims. I'm not exactly sure what it does, but I've heard it's horrible." He turned back to the trio, his face grim. "The odd thing is that this isn't Geth technology, and it sure as hell isn't Quarian. Nobody knows who invented these things. All we know is they were sick sons-of-bitches."

"Back up," Ashley muttered. "Can we go back to the fact that you're an Alliance war hero?"

Damian rolled his eyes. "Can we do this when the threat of imminent death _isn't_ hanging over our heads?"

Shepard crossed her arms. "Do either of you two know why the Geth would come here? They hadn't been seen in two hundred years before now."

"Maybe it was the Beacon," Ashley suggested. "They seemed to be swarming the thing when…" She trailed off.

Damian looked at the woman with an odd expression. Was that…sympathy?

"The dig site's up ahead, right?" Kaidan asked, clearly trying to change the subject.

"No point in looking there," the Australian remarked. "Somebody moved the thing a while ago. Might have been the Geth, might have been scientists… I don't know."

"Well, we should still look at the dig site," Shepard told him. "Maybe we'll pick up a clue or two about what it really is." She looked at Damian and Ashley. "You two should come with us. I doubt we can leave you here with the Geth."

"Glad to hear it," Damian replied with a smile. "Dead synthetics aren't exactly good company."

Shepard smiled at that. "So let's move."

"Lead the way, Commander," Ashley replied.

The Commander stopped and looked at the new additions to her team. "I'm not much of a stickler for that sort of thing. Feel free to call me Talia."

Damian shrugged. "Suit yourself, Talia. Now can we please get moving before more Geth show up to turn us into the Swiss cheese of old?"

* * *

The alien in the dark black armour walked cautiously, holding his pistol in front of him. He was a Turian, with white clan markings on his face, and he had a somewhat relaxed posture, but he looked like he could spring into action at any time.

His name was Nihlus, and he was a Council Spectre. Originally he was sent here to keep an eye on Talia Shepard's progress, to make sure she was good enough to be humanity's first addition to the Spectres. The Geth attack changed that.

He heard footsteps and pointed his pistol at the source.

It was another Turian, though this one was much taller than Nihlus was. He bore no clan markings on his reptilian skin, and shards of metal seemed to be a part of him. One of his arms had been replaced by a metal version at one point. Nihlus relaxed. He was a Spectre as well…and a friend. "Saren. What are you doing here?"

"The Council heard about the situation here," his fellow Spectre replied in a voice that sounded as harsh as it did soothing. "They sent me to help."

"I'm glad for it," Nihlus replied, holstering his gun and turning around. "This whole place has gone to hell.

Saren had moved behind Nihlus, so the younger Spectre didn't see him pull his heavy pistol out and aim it at his head. "Don't worry. I have everything under control."

A gunshot rang out.


	2. Escape from Paradise

The actual excavation site was, as Damian and Ashley had predicted, empty of the Prothean beacon they'd come here to investigate. Rubble dotted the area, though that was probably left over from either the Prothean ruins or the Geth attack.

Damian walked forward and put his pistol away. "I told you, Shepard. The beacon's been moved. Probably to the other side of the colony."

A loud gunshot shocked them all.

"What the hell was that?" Ashley demanded.

"That didn't sound like a Geth weapon," Kaidan added.

Shepard nodded in agreement. "Whatever that was, it wasn't from a Geth."

"It came from the spaceport. We should check it out," the Gunnery Chief suggested.

"Let's move."

Damian took the lead and signalled for them to stop at one point.

"What…" Shepard began to demand of him.

"There," he said simply, pointing at one of the Dragon's Teeth.

The Commander followed his finger to see a horror. Atop the device was what appeared to be a dried-up corpse. Its skin had turned into a mottled grey, and blue lines that resembled gross veins ran over the body, from the legs up to the eyeballs, which had been replaced by silver orbs bereft of sight.

The Dragon's Teeth around them began to detract into their base, and the corpses stopped as the spire vanished. One of them twitched.

"Oh God…" Kaidan murmured, his voice sounding sickened, as if he were trying to hold in a retch. "They're still alive."

"What'd the Geth do to them?" Ashley said. "Those poor people…"

"They're not people anymore," Damian muttered, his voice grim.

The corpses all started to move from their stationary location and stood on their two legs. Silently, they began to shamble towards the four soldiers.

Impassively, Damian gripped his pistol and shot one of them in the face. The thing screeched and fell, dead.

"What the hell did you do that for?!" Ashley demanded.

"It's either this or join the rest of the dead!" the veteran roared.

Shepard didn't like the situation, but she drew her assault rifle and opened fire on the shambling wraiths.

Ashley begrudgingly shot at the things with her pistol, trying to hold in the bile that threatened to spill from her mouth. These were probably people she knew once. Some of them might have even been… She shook herself away from the thought.

The fight was short and bloody. The wraiths bled white like the Geth rather than red like a human would.

When the creatures were cleared, Damian saw something from the corner of his eye and walked over to it. It was the remains of a little girl, holding a plush toy resembling an Asari in one hand. The toy was tattered and ripped, and its owner's blood covered the white dress.

Sadly, Damian knelt beside the body and closed its glassy eyes. "_Alcuni sono troppo giovane per questo destino, e tuttavia li che trova. Requiescat in Pace._"

"What was that?" Kaidan asked, his voice subdued.

"A friend of mine in N7 used to do that when a member of his squad died. He'd say something in Italian and let them rest."

"What did you say?" Shepard wanted to know.

"I just said, 'Some are too young for this fate, and yet it finds them.' As for the last three words, it's just 'Rest in Piece' in Italian."

"What, like in those classical video games?" Ashley asked.

He arched an eyebrow. "I guess so. My mate's family was always big on those. After all, they did name him Ezio."

Despite herself, Shepard smiled.

Damian stood up and looked around. "Come on. If we wanna get to the spaceport before more Geth show up, we should leave now."

The Commander nodded and started walking beside the man.

Behind her, Kaidan seemed to bristle a little, but no-one noticed.

Damian gave her a sidelong glance. "Why aren't you taking point? I mean, you _are _the leader of this mission, right?"

"Maybe, but I had some questions for you."

"Like…?"

"How'd you know those things were called Dragon's Teeth?"

"What, did they stop teaching Geth 101 in the Academy?" The Australian grinned. "It was one of the first things they taught us. Not that anyone expected the Geth to suddenly leave dark space and attack us, though. It was more out of habit. The Alliance brought a Quarian specialist in to teach us the basics of Geth technology, structure and tactics."

"What was his name?" Shepard questioned.

"Rael'Zorah nar Rayya. Nice guy, if a little conceited. He kept telling us about his daughter Tali'Zorah, and the promise he'd made to build her a name on the old Quarian homeworld. What was it called again?"

"Rannoch," the Commander supplied.

"That's the one. We all thought he was a little loco about that, what with the Geth problem, but maybe not. Maybe he's just a caring father."

Ashley stepped forward a little to ask her own question. "I ask again. How did you get grenades on Eden Prime? You're a civilian. Even if you _are_ a former N7."

Damian smirked. "I have my ways."

They reached the spaceport, an amalgam of white, red and silver metal that juxtaposed with the lush grass of the rest of Eden Prime.

There was one thing that soured the effect, however. Lying on the synthetic floor was a corpse. If one wasn't paying attention, they'd believe that it was just another colonist, another victim of the Geth. It was, however, something entirely different.

"Commander?" Kaidan muttered. "It's Nihlus."

The body was a Turian with dark skin, darker than the usual light grey of a Turian. White clan markings covered the face, but it wasn't the face that was of interest. The Turian was wearing black armour with the symbol of the Citadel Council on one side, where the N7 logo would be for an Alliance elite.

Damian knelt beside the body. "Friend of yours?"

"His name's Nihlus," Shepard replied, her voice a trained monotone. "He was on the _Normandy_ to assess me, whether I'm ready to join the Spectres."

His eyebrows shot up. "They wanted you for a Spectre? Wow. Didn't think the Council would ever want a human Spectre. Especially with Sparatus still on there."

"What do you mean?"

"There's Turians that hate humans just like there are humans who hate Turians." He smirked coldly. "Sparatus' hatred of humans would make a fanatic look sedate in comparison. He choked on 'thank you' after a certain…incident I was involved in."

"Incident?" Ashley asked, her interest piques by the words.

"I'll explain later." Damian tilted his head and looked at the dead Spectre. "This guy wasn't killed by a Geth."

"How can you tell?" Kaidan wondered.

"Geth couldn't sneak up on a Spectre and shoot him perfectly in the back of the head. He'd have been facing them, and there'd be wounds on the front. There's just the one." He pointed at the back of Nihlus' head. "And another thing. This wasn't a Geth weapon that did this. It was a high-powered handgun of some sort."

Shepard crossed her arms. "You sound like a cop."

The veteran smiled at her. "I spent a couple of years as an MP. Now…" He stood up and took hold of Shepard's arms, manoeuvring her to face away from him. "Imagine you're Nihlus, and you're scoping around for enemies."

Rolling her eyes, Shepard entered her usual stance, sans her gun; her hands would do for a substitute.

"What are you doing?" Kaidan demanded.

"Reconstructing the crime-scene." He stood behind Shepard and held his hand out like it was a handgun, standing sideways. He pointed his hand at the Commander's head. "Whoever did this was someone your friend trusted, so he had his back turned when the other guy shot him." He pushed his hand back, mimicking a gun's recoil. "Bang! And Nihlus is dead." He looked around and raised his voice. "Isn't that right, Powell?"

The others blinked at him.

Damian sighed. "Do I have to do everything?" He stepped behind a long crate and pulled out a cringing man with a short, scruffy beard. He pointed his pistol at the man's head. "I asked if I was right, Powell."

The man flinched. "Y-yeah, you're right. That other Turian did exactly what you said happened."

"Other Turian?" Shepard demanded of him.

"I-I'm not telling you anything," Powell muttered.

Damian's gun moved from the cringing colonist's head to his crotch. "Look, mate. Unless you want to learn what castration via handgun feels like…I suggest you start talking."

"Saren!" the man almost screamed. "His name was Saren!"

Shepard's eyes widened. "Did you say Saren?"

"Isn't he a Spectre as well?" Kaidan asked rhetorically.

"Why would a Spectre – and another Turian, at that – kill this Nihlus?" Ashley wondered, a slight note of discontent in her voice when she said the word 'Turian'.

"H-he had Geth with him, too," Powell told them. "He said he was headed for the beacon."

Everyone looked at one another.

"So Saren's the one who attacked Eden Prime…" Shepard mused, her face angry.

"Can I go now?" the colonist asked.

"Not just yet, Powell, old buddy," Damian drawled. "Hand over the last shipment."

Powell's face became one of fear. "Shipment? Shipment of what?"

The Australian's expression was beatific. "Okay. Say a fond farewell to your dick."

"Okay, okay! Just…let me go and I'll hand it over."

Damian smirked and let the man go; nearby, Shepard arched an eyebrow.

"You'll see," was all the veteran said.

Powell brought out a suitcase and opened it. Inside was a stocky black grenade launcher, six grenades and specs to recreate both the launcher and the ammo.

"You were smuggling?!" Ashley shouted. "You no good piece of…"

"Please, Chief," Damian stepped between them before the woman could punch Powell. "Allow me." Without changing expression, he kneed the smuggling colonist in the crotch. The man whined in a high-pitch tone before collapsing.

Ashley looked at him. "Thanks. I was just gonna punch him."

Damian grinned. "You're very welcome."

* * *

It turned out Saren had a back-up plan. Once they reached the area where the Prothean beacon had been moved, they found four demolition charges primed and ready. The Spectre was clearly planning to destroy all evidence he'd committed this atrocity.

Luckily, however, every one of them was skilled in defusing explosives. Shepard, Ashley, Kaidan and Damian prevented all four charges from going off.

Shepard led the group to the beacon and stopped. The piece of Prothean tech was glowing a light green.

The Commander put a hand to her ear and pressed the button on her communicator. "Joker, objective confirmed. Requesting immediate evac…"

"That's…different," Damian observed, looking at the beacon.

"It wasn't doing that before the attack," Ashley agreed, staying well back.

Kaidan, however, was moving closer, seemingly entranced by the green glow. "Something must have activated it…" He lurched suddenly, jumping forward.

"Alenko!" Damian shouted.

"I…I can't move…it's…dragging me in…" the Lieutenant said, gritting his teeth.

Shepard saw the commotion and immediately cut off her communication with her pilot. She ran towards Kaidan and threw him back, getting herself caught in the beam in his place.

"Shepard!" Kaidan shouted, moving closer.

Damian and Ashley held him back. "Don't touch her!" the woman told him. "It'll only grab you again."

Shepard began to rise into the air, surrounded by the ethereal glow. Her body entered a spasm briefly before she collapsed, her eyes rolling into the back of her head.

"Talia!" Damian shouted, remembering that she'd told them to call her by her first name. He ran to her side and looked at Kaidan. "Can you hurry up your pilot? We need to get her out of here, now!"

Kaidan nodded and activated his communicator. "Joker, it's Alenko. We need that evac yesterday. Four people, one injured. Shepard's down."

Mere seconds later, a cruiser with the name _Normandy _branded on the side appeared and the three bustled Shepard onto the ship.

Quickly, the _Normandy_ took off, leaving Eden Prime in its wake.

* * *

Saren rubbed his talon over his scaly head. The dull pains had begun to increase in volume, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle.

Staccato footsteps sounded behind him and he grimaced. Why had he allowed the Asari to join them again? If it weren't for her influence, he'd be tempted to kill her here and now.

Outwardly, however, he said, "Eden Prime was a major victory. We are closing in on the Conduit."

The Asari smiled coldly. "And we are one step closer to the return of the Reapers."

A single blue optic looked at them, unblinking.


	3. History Lesson

Images swirled through her head. Creatures of flesh and bone…humans, maybe. Synthetics…could be the Geth. And the humans…they were being…well, there was no other word for it. They were being exterminated.

She flinched away from the vision. A face appeared before her. A familiar face. A girl's. _YOU LET ME DIE._

She screamed internally and tried to get away from the horror. She only found more. Two familiar figures stood before her, bleeding gashes all over their bodies. _WHY, TALIA? WHY DID YOU LET US DIE?_

Her eyes flitted open and were wide in shock.

A now-familiar, drawling voice drew her attention. "Well, welcome back to the land of the living, Talia."

She sat up and found she was in the medical bay of the _Normandy_. Damian was sitting beside her bed, and a familiar figure stood nearby.

"Commander Shepard," the woman said in a clipped English accent. "How do you feel?"

"Like the morning after shore leave," she muttered in reply, holding her head.

That got a smile from Damian. "Understandable, considering what happened."

"What did happen?"

"You don't remember? You saved Kaidan from that freaky voodoo shit the beacon tried, only to get caught in it yourself. The beacon blew up, and you got KO'd. You've been out for…what was it?" He looked at the doctor.

"Twelve hours," Karin Chakwas supplied.

"That's…" Shepard could barely comprehend it.

"We're glad you're back with us, Talia," a voice interrupted, causing everyone to turn around. The somewhat imposing figure of a dark-skinned Alliance Captain permeated the room. His face was serious, but a small smile was on it.

"Captain," Shepard said, nodding. "I'd salute, but I don't feel up to it."

David Anderson's smile widened. "Understandable. As long as you feel alright."

"Aside from a hangover-sized headache, she's fine," Damian chimed in.

Anderson turned to him. "Damian 'Huntsman' Proctor. When you fell off the grid two years ago, everyone thought you'd gone into the mercenary business, not retired on Eden Prime."

"With all due respect, sir, I didn't fall off the grid," the Australian replied, using air quotes around the words 'fall off'. "I jumped. Military life was starting to grate on me."

The Captain shrugged. "Still, it's a good thing you were there. Maybe Alenko, Williams and Talia herself wouldn't be here if you weren't."

Damian gave him a sardonic two-fingered salute. "Don't tell Williams that, though, sir."

Anderson smiled widely, but it fell soon. "Proctor, I need to speak to Talia. Alone."

He got the hint immediately. "I'll wait outside, then." He looked at Chakwas. "Care to join me, Doctor?"

"Gladly." The two walked outside.

The Captain gave Shepard a serious look. "I heard about Nihlus, and Jenkins. And the activation of the beacon as well."

"We screwed up the mission, sir," the Commander replied, cursing herself silently.

"What happened wasn't your fault, Talia. The Geth were the ones that attacked, not you. Do you have any leads on what provoked the attack?"

"We got an eye-witness report that a Spectre named Saren was giving orders to the Geth. He's the one who killed Nihlus, as well."

Anderson's eyes glinted with fire and recognition. "Saren Arterius…I didn't know he could stoop so low."

"You know him, sir?"

"We have some history," he replied evasively. Clearly it wasn't something he liked to talk about. "Either way, Saren's the Council's top Spectre, but he's ruthless. Puts the mission above any and all lives. He'd gladly wipe out an entire race if it meant getting the job done. Couple that with a hatred of humanity and you've got a bad mix."

"If he's commanding the Geth," Shepard murmured to herself, "he's committing treason against the Council."

Anderson nodded. "On another topic, I read that the Protheans implanted memories into their beacons. I believe that you saw that memory when it activated. What did you see?"

"I'm…not really sure. I saw…humans, I think…being slaughtered by synthetics. They could have been Geth, but…it's all hazy."

The Captain looked worried. "We're headed to the Citadel, anyway. I'll brief Ambassador Udina about this, and he can raise the matter with the Council. Until then, you're free to go, if you're up to it."

"I feel better already," she replied honestly. Her strength was returning.

"Then you're dismissed, Commander."

Shepard saluted and left the medical bay.

Kaidan was directly outside. "I'm glad you're OK, Commander. I just wanted to apologise."

"For what?"

"I…I was the one who got you into this mess. If I hadn't gotten so close to the beacon…"

Shepard held up a hand. "Relax, Kaidan. It's not your fault."

The biotic sighed. "If you say so, Commander." He saluted and walked off.

"He's sweet on you, you know."

She turned around to see Damian leaning on the wall, arms crossed, one leg propped up on the cold steel. He'd changed out of his tattered combat gear and now wore the usual Alliance uniform. Ashley was standing nearby, but she quickly walked towards the elevator, saying she had to calibrate her weapons.

Shepard chose to ignore Damian's comment. "What were you talking to Williams about?"

"She's got survivor's guilt," the Australian replied, standing up straight. "Her entire squad, the 212, was annihilated by the Geth, and she blames herself. I was trying to coach her through it."

Something sprang to her mind. "You said on Eden Prime there was an incident you were involved in that concerned Councillor Sparatus."

Damian smirked. "You've been out cold for twelve hours and you want to talk about me?"

Shepard offered him a smile. "Come on. Tell me."

"Well, okay. But it's a really long story."

* * *

_I'd been posted on the Citadel for about a year, serving as a bodyguard to the new Human Ambassador, a windbag named Donnel Udina. It was a hard job. Not because people wanted Udina dead, but because I kept wanting to knock his block off._

_ Anyway, I was off-duty and having a drink at some club – I can't remember what its name was – when I saw three guys talking in hushed tones, crowding around an Asari. Two Turians, one Batarian. After a while, they left and I walked over to the Asari, who gave me a smouldering look. "Something you want?"_

_ "I just wanna know what those guys were talking about."_

_ She sighed. "And here I thought you wanted a romp. Oh well. It'll cost you, though."_

_ I rolled my eyes and brought up my omni-tool, sending over a large amount of credits over to her. It was a shitload of money, but I thought this might be serious._

_ The Asari's eyes widened at the total, but covered it quickly. "Those three were Blue Suns mercenaries. They were drunk, so they started talking about a plan their boss has going."_

_ "Who's their boss?"_

_ "Some Batarian named Arkai Bhelmont. He's the brother of Tarak, the guy who runs their operations on Omega, so there's practically a dynasty in the making there."_

_ "And what was their plan?"_

_ The look she gave me was deadly serious. I mean Asari Commando serious. "They plan to assassinate Councillors Tevos and Sparatus."_

_ My eyes widened. "Tevos and Sparatus? But why not…"_

_ "Valern? Beats me. Apparently their grudge is just with those two. They didn't say why, though."_

_ "When's it going down?"_

_ "In an hour."_

_ "Fuck. That doesn't give me a lot of time."_

_ She gave me a look. "You want to save a Turian and an Asari?"_

_ "What, you think I hate other species just because I'm human? No way."_

_ The Asari smiled. "What's your name?"_

_ "Damian Proctor."_

_ "Well, Damian, my name's Carisa. Feel free to call me anytime. If you need information or…" She put one hand on my thigh suggestively._

_ "Maybe some other time," I smiled a little and left the bar._

* * *

"Don't tell me you actually…" Shepard left it hanging.

"It would have been considered rude not to," Damian replied, not embarrassed in the slightest. "Besides, I'm still kicking, so she wasn't an Ardat-Yakshi or anything."

She rolled her eyes. "Keep talking, Proctor."

* * *

_I managed to glean some more information from a Blue Suns informant. He said the plan was for three members of the mercenary group – and Arkai Bhelmont himself – to attack both Sparatus and Tevos separately. Since I couldn't be in two places at once, I called in a favour from an old buddy. He'd retired from N7 earlier than I had, but he still kept in shape._

_ When he showed up, he was wearing light armour. Nondescript, unlike my uniform-grade N7 stuff. He had a sniper rifle on his back, and twin pistols on his hips._

_ I arched an eyebrow at his arsenal. "A little over-prepared, aren't we? It's just some mercs."_

_ He eyed me with those ice-blue orbs of his. "I never over-prepare, Huntsman."_

_ "Fine, fine, suit yourself." I grinned at him. "Just like old times, eh?"_

_ "Almost." He grinned right back._

* * *

"Who was this guy?"

"Talia, we'll get to the end a lot quicker if you don't keep interrupting."

"I was just curious."

He sighed. "Fine. His name's Gregory Seitz. Call-sign: Scorpion."

* * *

_We took up positions in the roofs of the two towers. The Councillors all had tall towers in the Presidium, a way of showing people they were important. I knew Udina wanted one for himself badly. Though, of course, if asked, he'd say it was 'for humanity.' Never heard such bullshit in my life._

_ I was in Sparatus' tower, while Greg was in Tevos'. Idly, I wondered which one Arkai would be attacking._

_ As if answering my thought, a Turian and a gruff Batarian – and not the one who'd been talking to Carisa – snuck up on Sparatus, who was sitting at his private terminal._

_ I pulled out my pistol, which I'd taken the precaution of installing a noise dampener in, and aimed at the Turian mercenary. Carefully, I fired._

_ Green blood sprayed from the mercenary's head and he fell. The sound of the crumpling body alerted Sparatus, who turned around to see Arkai pointing his Carnifex at his head._

_ "You've had this coming, you Turian fuck," the Batarian snarled. "One of your Spectres nearly killed my brother on Omega. So I'm gonna pay you back. The Council won't ever fuck with the Blue Suns ever again."_

_ "What about me? Can I fuck with you?"_

_ This line came from me, seeing as I'd dropped down from my vantage point and stood behind him. When he turned to see me, he opened fire, but I dodged the shot._

_ I ran towards him and bent his arm back, pulling the handgun away and throwing it away. He shouted in pain and rolled away._

_ "Human?" Arkai muttered. "What the fuck are you doing here?"_

_ I tilted my head. "I thought it was obvious."_

_ Snarling, the Batarian pulled out what looked like a bowie knife and lunged at me. I blocked the strikes with my arm guards, even though they received gashes, and punched him several times. He went down, the knife clattering to the ground._

_ Arkai groaned. "You're just one man. One _human_. You can't stop us from killing the Asari bitch."_

_ I smirked. "I don't have to."_

_ My communicator beeped. "_Huntsman, it's me,_" Greg reported in. "_I've taken down those two Blue Suns that attacked Tevos._"_

_ Arkai's four eyes widened. "What? Fuck you! You little…"_

_ "Save it." I grabbed his fallen knife and stabbed him in the throat. I stood up and looked at the Turian Councillor, who stared at me._

_ "That was risky, human," Sparatus told me._

_ "A thank you would be nice."_

_ He glared at me. "Fine. Thank you."_

_ "Much obliged." I grinned and left, activating my communicator. "Scorpion? It's me. Wanna grab a drink?"_

* * *

"A few days later, Udina recommended me for the Star of Terra, for some reason. For some other weird reason, I got it. It's with my effects that got rescued from Eden Prime. Ashley's in the room that Jenkins guy, rest his soul, vacated, while I'm sharing with Kaidan."

"So Anderson arranged Williams to be transferred to the _Normandy_?"

"Yep. And I got a rank they never use anymore. I'm a Privateer. I follow orders from Alliance high-ups or…" His lip curled slightly. "…or Udina, but I don't actually fall under Alliance jurisdiction. I'm kinda like a human-specific Spectre."

"Impressive," Shepard replied. "So you're stationed on the _Normandy_ too?"

"Yep. Just behind you on the pegging order."

A voice came up on the PA. "_Commander, we're about to dock with the Citadel. I figured you and your new friend would wanna see those taxpayer dollars at work._"

"Roger that, Joker." She looked at Damian. "Coming?"

"Gladly, Commander." He grinned.


End file.
